Sunday, June 18, 2006
Quick, Jesus! Cover Your Ears!
This mp3 of a perfectly respectable little choir singing the Hallelujah chorus deserves your IMMEDIATE attention. Make sure to listen to the whole thing.
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Finishing the Bat
A: PS, our defense was really strong today
J: wait what about our defense?
A: in softball
J: oh awesome work
A: however, I got played by the other team
J: how?
A: I was on first base, and the next guy hit a single, and as I was approaching second the other team started yelling "Go to third"
A: I am very suggestible when I am running bases
J: haha!
A: and I tried for third, but the ball got there first
J: could you run back to 2nd?
A: I don't think so
A: maybe
J: the Finishing the Hat is nice
A: good
A: I would like to hear mariah Carey's Finishing the Hat
J: hahah
A: everyone should take a crack at that song
J: who else?
J: Latoya Jackson
A: haha
A: sick
A: Beyonce would probably do a nice job
J: yeah I'd listen to that
A: the guy from Crash Test Dummies
A: hahah
J: Aaron Neville
A: ooh
A: good one
A: dolly parton
J: hahah
A: she's good at everything
J: she would do an awesome Finishing the Hat
A: I think I saw somewhere that there is now a documentary about her recent tour
A: this probably needs to be seen stat
J: oh really?
J: wow
J: Cher
A: hells yeah
A: nuts
A: I really want to hear that now
J: Cher singing finishing the hat? haha
A: maybe I will write a letter to that effect tomorrow
J: I'd like to hear Karita Mattila sing it
J: she would be all emotional
J: and would dress like a man
J: and like roll in paint
J: nude
A: and be hott
A: k
A: bed fo reals
J: wait what about our defense?
A: in softball
J: oh awesome work
A: however, I got played by the other team
J: how?
A: I was on first base, and the next guy hit a single, and as I was approaching second the other team started yelling "Go to third"
A: I am very suggestible when I am running bases
J: haha!
A: and I tried for third, but the ball got there first
J: could you run back to 2nd?
A: I don't think so
A: maybe
J: the Finishing the Hat is nice
A: good
A: I would like to hear mariah Carey's Finishing the Hat
J: hahah
A: everyone should take a crack at that song
J: who else?
J: Latoya Jackson
A: haha
A: sick
A: Beyonce would probably do a nice job
J: yeah I'd listen to that
A: the guy from Crash Test Dummies
A: hahah
J: Aaron Neville
A: ooh
A: good one
A: dolly parton
J: hahah
A: she's good at everything
J: she would do an awesome Finishing the Hat
A: I think I saw somewhere that there is now a documentary about her recent tour
A: this probably needs to be seen stat
J: oh really?
J: wow
J: Cher
A: hells yeah
A: nuts
A: I really want to hear that now
J: Cher singing finishing the hat? haha
A: maybe I will write a letter to that effect tomorrow
J: I'd like to hear Karita Mattila sing it
J: she would be all emotional
J: and would dress like a man
J: and like roll in paint
J: nude
A: and be hott
A: k
A: bed fo reals
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Les Tonies
No, I didn't manage to see anything besides Sweeney this year, and no, this does not preclude me from shooting my mouth off about the other plays involved.
- The Jersey Boys win was nothing short of a travesty. I don't care how fun it is, you can't stage an oldies station and have it compete with people trying to write actual new musicals. They should just have a separate freaking category for these things, call it "Best Regurgitated Musical" or whatever. I would also like someone to explain to me (again) how a piece can lose book and score and still win best new musical.
- The History Boys really sounds like a good show. Must do that one of these days.
- Drowsy Chaperone also looks delightful, and J confirms as much.
- I'm sure L. Chanze deserves her Tony for that other "entertainment" very much, altho I really would have liked to see Ms. Lupone take it home. A titan herself, she took a role essentially set in stone by another titan and made it her own. If we are going to award Broadway people for anything, shouldn't it be this?
- At least Sweeney won two categories it earned in spades: direction and orchestration.
- The number from the Wedding Singer made me want to claw my eyes out. How low has the American musical theatre sunk that it can actually make you pine for the authenticity of the original Adam Sandler movie? So very, very, very sad. May it close tomorrow and may we never speak of it again.
- Even though it is supposed to be ass and everyone is complaining about Alan Cumming being a one trick pony/greaseball, I have to say the Threepenny opera number with him and Cindy Lauper was pretty good.
- Supa-cute acceptance award goes to Cynthia Nixon.
- Julia Roberts, you are a big tool.
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Rings and things
I mean, not that I need to inform anyone who's anyone who wiles away their time in the opera-'sphere, but La Cieca is doing the Lord's work with her grand mix n' match Ring podcast this month. You know, if the bounty of the Lord included neat opera downloads alongside the goats and milk and honey and stuff.
Over at his place, Maury is using the occasion to throw down his quick and dirty two cents about recorded Ring preferences. Though my knowledge of Ring Cycles and their discontents is rather more limited than his, I would concur that Solti is the place to start. The sound quality is stupendous, which, despite those who would swear by such and such Walkure recorded through a burlap sack next to a consumptive 200 years ago, is pretty dang important when trying to immerse onself in something of the Ring's musical complexity. And Solti brings a remarkably exciting consistency of vision to the money passages.
That said, I really find Windgassen's Siegfried there a chore. Although I suppose that's some further insight for anyone getting into the Ring. With the freakish exception of Melchior, no one on record really makes it through Siegfried alive, or at least without sounding scared shitless 40 percent of the time. Am I wrong?
Over at his place, Maury is using the occasion to throw down his quick and dirty two cents about recorded Ring preferences. Though my knowledge of Ring Cycles and their discontents is rather more limited than his, I would concur that Solti is the place to start. The sound quality is stupendous, which, despite those who would swear by such and such Walkure recorded through a burlap sack next to a consumptive 200 years ago, is pretty dang important when trying to immerse onself in something of the Ring's musical complexity. And Solti brings a remarkably exciting consistency of vision to the money passages.
That said, I really find Windgassen's Siegfried there a chore. Although I suppose that's some further insight for anyone getting into the Ring. With the freakish exception of Melchior, no one on record really makes it through Siegfried alive, or at least without sounding scared shitless 40 percent of the time. Am I wrong?
Thursday, June 01, 2006
'05 - '06 Reviews
- Jenufa (Glimmerglass)
- The Greater Good (Glimmerglass)
- Elektra (Tanglewood)
- Tancredi (Caramoor)
- Puritani (Caramoor)
- Lohengrin 2 (Met)
- Rodelinda A/J (Met)
- Lohengrin (Met)
- Tosca (Met)
- Don Pasquale (Met)
- Fidelio (Met)
- Mazeppa (Met)
- Forza A/J (Met)
- Samson (Met)
- Traviata (Met)
- Cyrano (Met)
- Magic Flute A/J (Met)
- Wozzeck A/J (Met)
- Rigoletto A/J (Met)
- American Tragedy A/J (Met)
- Romeo A/J (Met)
- Figaro (Met)
- Turandot (NYCO)
- Mines of Sulphur (NYCO)
- Cosi Fan Tutte (Met)
- Lucia di Lammermoor (Met)
Monday, May 29, 2006
Parsifal
With all the Parsifal lately, I have been trying again to make some sense of the thing.
What the hell is it about Parsifal? One can see Tristan in it, and the Ring, and even Lohengrin for that matter. Yet there is something else so terrible and fascinating all at once. The music is the noise of the yoke around all of our necks. The sound of our horrible little existence ringing clear. I daresay there are times when I have to turn it off just to maintain an even keel.
Case in point, has music as excruciating as Kundry's in the second Act ever been written elsewhere? Somehow Wagner manages to infuse every pleasurable sound with poison, every interval with a dark underbelly, every climax becomes imperfect and rotten.
And what of the final redemption? It takes the form of the Christian redemption, yes, but Wagner strips the act of every shred of triumph usually attributed to it. All the trumpets and hosannas fall away, and we are left with the simplest indication that amidst so much pain, and wandering, there is indeed the possibility that wounds can be healed. It isn't optimism, it is simply a statement of fact.
I have had moments in the last month where the score has suddently evoked the same feeling of chills one gets in the most foreboding pieces of science fiction, say, the first Alien movie. That's not to say that Alien is the same work of art that Parsifal is, of course. But there is that same same sense of dread in the pit of one's stomach that an unknown universe is revealing itself. That a truly novel world, with rules you have yet to comprehend, is in your presence, and that it is entirely possible that this is your world after all.
What the hell is it about Parsifal? One can see Tristan in it, and the Ring, and even Lohengrin for that matter. Yet there is something else so terrible and fascinating all at once. The music is the noise of the yoke around all of our necks. The sound of our horrible little existence ringing clear. I daresay there are times when I have to turn it off just to maintain an even keel.
Case in point, has music as excruciating as Kundry's in the second Act ever been written elsewhere? Somehow Wagner manages to infuse every pleasurable sound with poison, every interval with a dark underbelly, every climax becomes imperfect and rotten.
And what of the final redemption? It takes the form of the Christian redemption, yes, but Wagner strips the act of every shred of triumph usually attributed to it. All the trumpets and hosannas fall away, and we are left with the simplest indication that amidst so much pain, and wandering, there is indeed the possibility that wounds can be healed. It isn't optimism, it is simply a statement of fact.
I have had moments in the last month where the score has suddently evoked the same feeling of chills one gets in the most foreboding pieces of science fiction, say, the first Alien movie. That's not to say that Alien is the same work of art that Parsifal is, of course. But there is that same same sense of dread in the pit of one's stomach that an unknown universe is revealing itself. That a truly novel world, with rules you have yet to comprehend, is in your presence, and that it is entirely possible that this is your world after all.
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Hrm
This kind of slipped by before, but after Tosca it sticks out like sore thumb. James Morris is really going to sing Sachs in next year's Meistersingers? Really? I haven't heard the video from 95 but I'm sure its fine, just as he is fine in the Ring video from 91. But it is not fine anymore, as he made abundantly clear to everyone who envied Mr. Blaine in his bubble listening to him earlier in the month. It's one thing to deal with for all of Scarpia's 25 minutes of singing, quite another to contend with it for 6 hours. Has anyone heard him do this recently? Should we be afraid?
Monday, May 22, 2006
Off topic
So, I saw Pollini live for the first time the other weekend at Orchestra Hall in Chicago, playing a program of Chopin and Liszt. It was one of those handful of moments in life when one suddenly finds oneself in possession of shocking new proof about what a human is capable of. Not impressive/mind blowing, but literally/mind blowing. He has an ability to see the structure of a piece with such clarity and foresight that one gets the giddy uncanny feeling that every note is truly in its proper place as the composer intended it.
Now, I suppose he has a rap for being 'distant', and its true that the Liszt which turns on rapture rather than structure (exhibit A being the B minor sonata) was less intoxicating. But in those pieces which fully play to his strengths of allowing you to see a work in its totality--the motherfucking oh my god out of fucking control Chopin Polonaise for instance--he is equal to none. The wonder of the thing literally brought tears to my eyes.
And PS, it should be noted that his technique is IMPECCABLE. His fingers look like the fingers you would see in a piano video for 10 year olds, yet moving an order of magnitude faster. It is virtually incomprehensible.
His *five* encores were an unmissable concert in and of themselves. He played the Transcendental Etude at least half as fast as twice as articulate I've ever heard it. The last encore, Debussy's "Cathedrale engloutie" confirmed that Pollini is as magically adept with the fast as the simple. It is difficult for one to hear his Debussy in its entirety. It requires a different sort of attention to the perfection in the value and placement of each note which one tends to take for granted. But when one hears it, it is the voice of Debussy himself.
Now, I suppose he has a rap for being 'distant', and its true that the Liszt which turns on rapture rather than structure (exhibit A being the B minor sonata) was less intoxicating. But in those pieces which fully play to his strengths of allowing you to see a work in its totality--the motherfucking oh my god out of fucking control Chopin Polonaise for instance--he is equal to none. The wonder of the thing literally brought tears to my eyes.
And PS, it should be noted that his technique is IMPECCABLE. His fingers look like the fingers you would see in a piano video for 10 year olds, yet moving an order of magnitude faster. It is virtually incomprehensible.
His *five* encores were an unmissable concert in and of themselves. He played the Transcendental Etude at least half as fast as twice as articulate I've ever heard it. The last encore, Debussy's "Cathedrale engloutie" confirmed that Pollini is as magically adept with the fast as the simple. It is difficult for one to hear his Debussy in its entirety. It requires a different sort of attention to the perfection in the value and placement of each note which one tends to take for granted. But when one hears it, it is the voice of Debussy himself.
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Sorry, Blog
I know. We have been bad. Things have been going down.
Parsifal was wonderful. Waltraud is a phenomenon and a bag of chips--les deux. Hep B nobly overcame his Lohengrin broadcast slips, but had a couple of questionable moments when I saw it. Rene "say hey" Pape was a divine Gurnemanz. I finally got the Thomas Hampson deal...it's really not a 'pretty' voice when the going get tough, but boy does he push it to the limits.
Tosca with La Millo was a bit of an anti-climax. I've heard the tape on Parterre so I know why she's to die for, but this is not true on the stage at least not the other night. Although I guess I found it more interesting than el Voigto, who, artist that she is, just doesn't get my goat in the Italian rep. Do Ariadne like you used to...do it!!! Oh well.
James Morris continued to be a bellowing and unpleasant Scarpia, though who are we to blame. Eduardo Vila was a hair more listenable than Farina in Cavaradossi, but that ain't saying much.
Due to illness and life troubles we bailed on the G-Fil Elisir tonight, which I am now feeling guilty about. Hopefully someone went and will rub it in.
Parsifal was wonderful. Waltraud is a phenomenon and a bag of chips--les deux. Hep B nobly overcame his Lohengrin broadcast slips, but had a couple of questionable moments when I saw it. Rene "say hey" Pape was a divine Gurnemanz. I finally got the Thomas Hampson deal...it's really not a 'pretty' voice when the going get tough, but boy does he push it to the limits.
Tosca with La Millo was a bit of an anti-climax. I've heard the tape on Parterre so I know why she's to die for, but this is not true on the stage at least not the other night. Although I guess I found it more interesting than el Voigto, who, artist that she is, just doesn't get my goat in the Italian rep. Do Ariadne like you used to...do it!!! Oh well.
James Morris continued to be a bellowing and unpleasant Scarpia, though who are we to blame. Eduardo Vila was a hair more listenable than Farina in Cavaradossi, but that ain't saying much.
Due to illness and life troubles we bailed on the G-Fil Elisir tonight, which I am now feeling guilty about. Hopefully someone went and will rub it in.
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Good listening
If you have the chance, do check out the new podcast from Wellsung friend Vincent over at Wagner Operas. The theme is Wagner sung in Italian and the offerings range from the delightfully absurd to the rather divine. The selections are heavy on the Lohengrin, natch--the centerpiece being a full blooded "In Fernem Land" courtesy of none less than Mario del Monaco. Sweet toned Girliemen of the Grail need not apply.
Download it here.
Download it here.
Jenufa not-Live Blogging
A: Steva is such an asshole
J: dude
J: that whole family is trouble
A: everyone sounds so freaking good in this
A: uh oh
A: someone's bout to get themselves cut
J: which are you watching/listening to?
A: Glyndebourne
J: the vid?
J: oh hot
J: it is so awesome
J: maybe I will put it on too
J: when it comes time for act two tell me....and I will start it at the exact same time
A: ok
A: get ready
J: I am ready
J: finger on button
A: go
J: ok shot of cross
J: and jesus
A: check
J: lone candle
J: are we sort of in synch?
A: yes
A: Silja's makeup is so creepy
J: seriously
J: Bert Alexander is so great
A: for reals
A: is that really great extended aria coming now?
J: I think it is after Kostelbitchka goes to off the baby
A: weak!
A: good headline here
J: haha
A: this opera is tha bomb
A: Silj-tastic
J: it is so awesome
J: I mean her voice is insane
J: but like
J: she is oddly wonderful
J: and this scene is so amazing
J: and now is the amazing beautiful aria
A: being in a little theater with her and having her do that must be NUTS
J: I love that violin line
J: oh man I can't wait for all the Jenufa action in the coming year
A: it's like Jenufapalooza
J: it so is
J: Glimmerglass
J: Met
J: Washington DC
J: sweet
J: Mattila is going to be amazing doing this scene
A: oh yeah!
A: she going to freak out
A: *chills*
J: oh I am so happy you are watching this
A: it's just so great
A: I mean, the Kostelnitscka isn't totally evil
J: I mean
J: she drowns a baby in the freezing river
A: right
A: ok
A: but context
J: I suppose there is some greater good in mind
J: as opposed to the Kabanicha
A: I bet some Slavic language has a word for an 'OK baby drowning'
A: fo
A: shizzle
J: seriously
J: ok, the exciting conclusion
A: It would be cool if the Kostelnicka started biting people in the Third act
J: haha
J: that is a wonderful idea
J: or started snarfing baby parts
A: in the corner...she has a little big she keeps digging into
J: ew
A: wait
A: why is she dressed like a widow?
J: because the baby died
A: huh
J: but everyone thinks she is just being plain, because only the boys and the Kostelbitch know she even had a baby
J: I love this Laca
A: It's nice we don't have those mandatory clothing issues anymore
J: indeed
J: he has a line coming up I love
A: it is basically like wearing a button that's all "Ask me about my baby that died"
J: yay
A: who the f are you
J: she is the mayor's daughter
J: Steva's fiance
A: right
A: that is good "this character is a drip" music
J: but like, have you ever heard of knocking, mayor daughter?
J: "My stepmom drowned Stevusko and all I got was this lousy black frock"
A: ha
J: oh man
J: she is awful
A: ha
A: good one Jenufa
J: which "See Steva you have found true love?"
A: yeah
J: yeah well he can't stand your voice lady
J: evidently this is really some czech tradition
J: that random village girls show up to dance at weddings
J: I find this all so creepy in context
A: oh fuck
J: shit hits fan
A: *more chills*
A: wow
A: now that is some opera
J: I am one minute behind
J: because of a technical difficulty
J: it is def in my top 5
A: hearing the Met Orchestra playing that live is going to be very, very kick-ass
J: that is serious shit
J: god damn!
J: it gets me every time!
J: I want the entirety of Jenufa to be performed at my funeral
A: noted
A: since Anna Silja will probably still be an option when that happens, do you want us to shoot for her or someone else?
J: well I was thinking her or Judy
A: haha
Monday, May 08, 2006
The Boy in the Bubble
J: oh wait
J: tomorrow is the Voigt Tosca
A: right
J: I think I just made Diet Sprite®
J: I had some seltzer
J: and I squeezed in a lemon wedge
J: and a packet of Sweet & Low™
J: and it tastes like delicious Sprite®
A: huh
A: maybe that is their secret
J: maybe
J: mine is a little better
J: I forgot about DVoigTosca tomorrow--are you still down?
A: yep
J: it is 7:30
A: kel
A: +w
J: hah
J: sweet, it'll be out by 10:30
A: oh nice
A: it looks my dry cleaner is making good progress
A: they got a lot done this weekend
J: hah excellent
A: have you delved into the new acquisitions?
J: not really
J: some of the Onegin
J: which is great
J: and the Sarka is beautiful
A: oh cool
A: I got out a birgit nilsson elektra video the other day
J: oh hot
J: who else is on it?
A: Rysanek
J: whoa
A: met 1980
A: w/ Jimmy
J: who is the Klytemsentra?
A: Nilsson is Elektra
A: I don't know from Elektra, tho
J: so tomorrow I work for new people in a new office
A: oh right
A: crazy!
J: right?
A: how are you feeling about that?
J: good
J: I feel like I may drink a whole bottle of wine before the night is over
J: ugh--ABC news is up at David Blaine
A: did they say when he's going to be out of there?
J: seriously though, I hope D. Blaine has some brain damage or something so we never have to watch him and his retard fans again. Though it will give us something to do during the Tosca intermission
A: tomorrow is the potential drowning?
J: yes
A: what are they going to do with all that nasty water afterwards? Let it drain into the fountain??
J: ew
J: tomorrow is the Voigt Tosca
A: right
J: I think I just made Diet Sprite®
J: I had some seltzer
J: and I squeezed in a lemon wedge
J: and a packet of Sweet & Low™
J: and it tastes like delicious Sprite®
A: huh
A: maybe that is their secret
J: maybe
J: mine is a little better
J: I forgot about DVoigTosca tomorrow--are you still down?
A: yep
J: it is 7:30
A: kel
A: +w
J: hah
J: sweet, it'll be out by 10:30
A: oh nice
A: it looks my dry cleaner is making good progress
A: they got a lot done this weekend
J: hah excellent
A: have you delved into the new acquisitions?
J: not really
J: some of the Onegin
J: which is great
J: and the Sarka is beautiful
A: oh cool
A: I got out a birgit nilsson elektra video the other day
J: oh hot
J: who else is on it?
A: Rysanek
J: whoa
A: met 1980
A: w/ Jimmy
J: who is the Klytemsentra?
A: Nilsson is Elektra
A: I don't know from Elektra, tho
J: so tomorrow I work for new people in a new office
A: oh right
A: crazy!
J: right?
A: how are you feeling about that?
J: good
J: I feel like I may drink a whole bottle of wine before the night is over
J: ugh--ABC news is up at David Blaine
A: did they say when he's going to be out of there?
J: seriously though, I hope D. Blaine has some brain damage or something so we never have to watch him and his retard fans again. Though it will give us something to do during the Tosca intermission
A: tomorrow is the potential drowning?
J: yes
A: what are they going to do with all that nasty water afterwards? Let it drain into the fountain??
J: ew
Sunday, May 07, 2006
La Dolce Lohengrin
Comme Monsieur D'Annato, I'm having a complicated reaction to Klaus Florian Vogt's Lohengrin last night.
Theoretically, I really love what a voice quality and sensibility like this brings to the role. The ethereal, impossible sweetness in Vogt's Lohengrin is a far cry from the standard lusty knight characterization, and the medieval cautionary tale reading it implies. In heightening Lohengrin's estrangement from the world and sense that he is too perfect, we are brought deeper into the question of whether the holy, utopian love he brings can actually exist among humans and the world they live in. As has been argued, Wagner indicates his later explicit commitment to Schopenhauer's metaphysics here--that destiny for the soul and true happiness actually can't exist in the tangible world we can perceive. Lohengrin's sadness at Elsa's failure is thus our sadness for the world, and the futility of hoping that we can achieve something more perfect than ourselves. Or something like that.
And make no mistake, Vogt presents a marvelous reading in this vein. As promised, "Mein Lieber Schwan" was a thing of heartbreakingly delicate beauty. The effortless honeyed tones produced throughout soared above the ensembles. And as Maury notes, it's really a fascinating aural puzzle trying to reconcile his crystal tone with its volume.
And yet.
A lot of Lohengrin's music just has trouble hitting that sweet spot without that big time lusty sound. Vogt's sweetness, while unimpeachable, had a mannered quality, an excessive concern with placing each note in its proper gold-foil wrapped box that kept the unending lines from soaring to that breaking point one needs for a Grade-A Lohengasm. All the rambling above aside, Lohengrin doesn't quite feel right without that unabashed thrust of the romantic hero. It doesn't have to sound like Verdi, to be sure, but you need to be able to recognize they've got genes in common. And besides, ambivalence about what his departure means aside, he does have to do some serious stuff while he's there, killing people and getting hot for Elsa and stuff. Vogt's Lohengrin sounds more likely to ask her if she wants to get dinner sometime: "I mean, yeah, I guess it would be like a date, but we'll just do something low-key ok? Do you like Thai?" (J had a killer impression of this going by the end of the evening.) There were moments when Vogt deliberately tried add some girth to his sound, but if not intrusive, it was very decidedly not organic, and didn't do much to change that essential lean beef sound. Suggestions over at Maury's place that Strauss might be an interesting fit strike me as very intriguing. I think I would be all over his Bacchus.
So I guess the moral is that Lohengrin is an endlessly fascinating opera, and that Vogt is possessed of a freakishly lovely voice that I would like to hear again. Preferably the next time he takes the mound he'll put a little more spit on the ball.
P.S. The Mattaliciousness just won't quit. Can she please make a recording of this so I can get it and listen to it all the time?
Theoretically, I really love what a voice quality and sensibility like this brings to the role. The ethereal, impossible sweetness in Vogt's Lohengrin is a far cry from the standard lusty knight characterization, and the medieval cautionary tale reading it implies. In heightening Lohengrin's estrangement from the world and sense that he is too perfect, we are brought deeper into the question of whether the holy, utopian love he brings can actually exist among humans and the world they live in. As has been argued, Wagner indicates his later explicit commitment to Schopenhauer's metaphysics here--that destiny for the soul and true happiness actually can't exist in the tangible world we can perceive. Lohengrin's sadness at Elsa's failure is thus our sadness for the world, and the futility of hoping that we can achieve something more perfect than ourselves. Or something like that.
And make no mistake, Vogt presents a marvelous reading in this vein. As promised, "Mein Lieber Schwan" was a thing of heartbreakingly delicate beauty. The effortless honeyed tones produced throughout soared above the ensembles. And as Maury notes, it's really a fascinating aural puzzle trying to reconcile his crystal tone with its volume.
And yet.
A lot of Lohengrin's music just has trouble hitting that sweet spot without that big time lusty sound. Vogt's sweetness, while unimpeachable, had a mannered quality, an excessive concern with placing each note in its proper gold-foil wrapped box that kept the unending lines from soaring to that breaking point one needs for a Grade-A Lohengasm. All the rambling above aside, Lohengrin doesn't quite feel right without that unabashed thrust of the romantic hero. It doesn't have to sound like Verdi, to be sure, but you need to be able to recognize they've got genes in common. And besides, ambivalence about what his departure means aside, he does have to do some serious stuff while he's there, killing people and getting hot for Elsa and stuff. Vogt's Lohengrin sounds more likely to ask her if she wants to get dinner sometime: "I mean, yeah, I guess it would be like a date, but we'll just do something low-key ok? Do you like Thai?" (J had a killer impression of this going by the end of the evening.) There were moments when Vogt deliberately tried add some girth to his sound, but if not intrusive, it was very decidedly not organic, and didn't do much to change that essential lean beef sound. Suggestions over at Maury's place that Strauss might be an interesting fit strike me as very intriguing. I think I would be all over his Bacchus.
So I guess the moral is that Lohengrin is an endlessly fascinating opera, and that Vogt is possessed of a freakishly lovely voice that I would like to hear again. Preferably the next time he takes the mound he'll put a little more spit on the ball.
P.S. The Mattaliciousness just won't quit. Can she please make a recording of this so I can get it and listen to it all the time?
Thursday, May 04, 2006
One Rodelinda, Please. Hold the Rodelinda.
Oof.
I really have to throw my two cents in here about the crimes against humanity's ears and general musical sensibilities that occurred on Tuesday night at the Met.
How do I put this delicately... Renee Fleming is a disaster as Rodelinda. What the hell is going on? WHY does she sing this rep? It was like one big slur that lasted for four hours. I did not hear one consonant, and there was no sense whatsoever of where one note ended and another began. It was just this sort of formless, free-flowing sound that sort of skated over Handel's music--the music that was hiding somewhere under this drool-bag of vocal drivel.
I will reiterate what Alex mentioned--I don't get off on disliking Renee Fleming. By HER, I think I am reffering to her singing. I have definitely enjoyed and respected elements of her singing in the past. But I don't f-ing want to hear her sing Handel ever again. Also, I resent that somehow people have convinced themselves that it is good--or even that it is vaguely acceptable. The crowd of deaf (evidently), bravo-screeching Renee devotees were really pissing me off. She really, truly is singing her own precious little arrangement of this role--her covered, safe little sound cowering behind the deceptively daunting challenge of singing Handel as written. And I really want to make these people understand. Or at least make them go away.
OK, that said, it was actually a lovely evening all in all. John Relyea had me at Ciao. Actually, I was pretty convinced of my adoration for him back in October after his virile turn in Lucia. Stephanie Blythe's characteristically near-baritone sound was as precise and impressive as ever. I feel like she is one those Met go-to singers who gets a fair amount of work, but rarely gets to really show off the goods as much as I'd like.
The Wellsung Prize for Awesomeness goes, without question, to cutie countertenor Andreas Scholl's heartbreakingly beautiful turn as Bertarido. His flawless precision and control culminated in an breathak artistry that actually made up for the lack of substance in the leading lady.
Also awesome was this production. As it is a year old I will not say much--it manages to strike just the right balance between detailed extravagance and understated elegance. It is an accomplishment.
It looks like we were at a different performance or Rodelinda Starring Renee Fleming than Steve Smith. I think Mr. Smith is a terrific writer and critic. Though I have to quote, for humor's sake more than anything, Alex's thoughts on the discrepancy in our reactions:
"I mean, there are differences of opinion, and then there are the noises she was making."
Seriously.
I really have to throw my two cents in here about the crimes against humanity's ears and general musical sensibilities that occurred on Tuesday night at the Met.
How do I put this delicately... Renee Fleming is a disaster as Rodelinda. What the hell is going on? WHY does she sing this rep? It was like one big slur that lasted for four hours. I did not hear one consonant, and there was no sense whatsoever of where one note ended and another began. It was just this sort of formless, free-flowing sound that sort of skated over Handel's music--the music that was hiding somewhere under this drool-bag of vocal drivel.
I will reiterate what Alex mentioned--I don't get off on disliking Renee Fleming. By HER, I think I am reffering to her singing. I have definitely enjoyed and respected elements of her singing in the past. But I don't f-ing want to hear her sing Handel ever again. Also, I resent that somehow people have convinced themselves that it is good--or even that it is vaguely acceptable. The crowd of deaf (evidently), bravo-screeching Renee devotees were really pissing me off. She really, truly is singing her own precious little arrangement of this role--her covered, safe little sound cowering behind the deceptively daunting challenge of singing Handel as written. And I really want to make these people understand. Or at least make them go away.
OK, that said, it was actually a lovely evening all in all. John Relyea had me at Ciao. Actually, I was pretty convinced of my adoration for him back in October after his virile turn in Lucia. Stephanie Blythe's characteristically near-baritone sound was as precise and impressive as ever. I feel like she is one those Met go-to singers who gets a fair amount of work, but rarely gets to really show off the goods as much as I'd like.
The Wellsung Prize for Awesomeness goes, without question, to cutie countertenor Andreas Scholl's heartbreakingly beautiful turn as Bertarido. His flawless precision and control culminated in an breathak artistry that actually made up for the lack of substance in the leading lady.
Also awesome was this production. As it is a year old I will not say much--it manages to strike just the right balance between detailed extravagance and understated elegance. It is an accomplishment.
It looks like we were at a different performance or Rodelinda Starring Renee Fleming than Steve Smith. I think Mr. Smith is a terrific writer and critic. Though I have to quote, for humor's sake more than anything, Alex's thoughts on the discrepancy in our reactions:
"I mean, there are differences of opinion, and then there are the noises she was making."
Seriously.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
A Very Nice Amount of Handel
On balance, a delightful Rodelinda last night...
First things first: extreme props are granted to Andreas Scholl in his Met debut. Quite simply, it is the most beautiful countertenor voice I have ever heard. Words aren't enough to describe the exquisite sound and painstaking artistry he brings to this music. It is a crying shame that his fach went out of fashion a few centuries ago, because I want to hear him in everything.
In fact, both J and I were hoping he would take over for Renaay. Now, when I say this, please know that I take no joy in hating on her. I really like believing hype! And I have heard and very much enjoyed her in the past, including Manon earlier this year. But she sounded like ass last night. It was like all of her most infuriating qualities on steroids. The most weak, contrived, covered sound you can imagine. Utter, baffling lack of precision (which is doubly inexcusable in Handel). Total sacrifice of any phrasing or larger line to trying, and failing, to make everything precious. Diction so wretched and lazy I spent the whole evening annoyed that I couldn't understand what she was saying. And I don't know a lick of Italian. And she seems to think the obligatory Beautiful Voice™ moment at the end of each aria makes up for the ten minutes of dreck that came before. I'm not buying it, lady. Hopefully this is just the worst possible music for her and doesn't represent total submission to her demons. Because it really, really sucks to listen to. And it double sucks to hear 5000 people hoot about it pretending like they don't have ears on their heads.
And especially a shame here considering how much the rest of the cast outshone their leader. Stephanie Blythe is such a joy. She takes Handel and makes something really rich and unique out of it. And the voice is just so big and deep and endlessly fascinating. Methinks hers is really what they mean when they call a voice Met-sized: every note just effortlessly cuts to the back of the hall. She's too classy to turn on the guns in Handel, but I have a feeling that when she chooses to sing really, really loud it is literally earsplitting. Christophe Dumaux, also making a debut, did very nicely as well. Ditto John Relyea.
And who couldn't love such a beautiful production? There's "whoa there's a courtyard onstage" and then there's "whoa what an aesthetically pleasing tasteful courtyard onstage". This was the latter. The scene conveyor belt thing was also very cool.
I don't know if I can say whether I necessarily like Rodelinda 'more' than other Handel operas, as it really does all kind of blend together after the fact. But I certainly am very pro Handel in general today. I don't have any huge beef with period instrument stuff, which I find perfectly enjoyable most of the time. But as a bid for Handel as living breathing opera it seems to me that the set up here is hard to beat. It's just a fact that there's a quality in Handel that is a bit beyond the veil of history for modern audiences. The corrective is here: fantastic singers really DOING the arias and with no apologies.
First things first: extreme props are granted to Andreas Scholl in his Met debut. Quite simply, it is the most beautiful countertenor voice I have ever heard. Words aren't enough to describe the exquisite sound and painstaking artistry he brings to this music. It is a crying shame that his fach went out of fashion a few centuries ago, because I want to hear him in everything.
In fact, both J and I were hoping he would take over for Renaay. Now, when I say this, please know that I take no joy in hating on her. I really like believing hype! And I have heard and very much enjoyed her in the past, including Manon earlier this year. But she sounded like ass last night. It was like all of her most infuriating qualities on steroids. The most weak, contrived, covered sound you can imagine. Utter, baffling lack of precision (which is doubly inexcusable in Handel). Total sacrifice of any phrasing or larger line to trying, and failing, to make everything precious. Diction so wretched and lazy I spent the whole evening annoyed that I couldn't understand what she was saying. And I don't know a lick of Italian. And she seems to think the obligatory Beautiful Voice™ moment at the end of each aria makes up for the ten minutes of dreck that came before. I'm not buying it, lady. Hopefully this is just the worst possible music for her and doesn't represent total submission to her demons. Because it really, really sucks to listen to. And it double sucks to hear 5000 people hoot about it pretending like they don't have ears on their heads.
And especially a shame here considering how much the rest of the cast outshone their leader. Stephanie Blythe is such a joy. She takes Handel and makes something really rich and unique out of it. And the voice is just so big and deep and endlessly fascinating. Methinks hers is really what they mean when they call a voice Met-sized: every note just effortlessly cuts to the back of the hall. She's too classy to turn on the guns in Handel, but I have a feeling that when she chooses to sing really, really loud it is literally earsplitting. Christophe Dumaux, also making a debut, did very nicely as well. Ditto John Relyea.
And who couldn't love such a beautiful production? There's "whoa there's a courtyard onstage" and then there's "whoa what an aesthetically pleasing tasteful courtyard onstage". This was the latter. The scene conveyor belt thing was also very cool.
I don't know if I can say whether I necessarily like Rodelinda 'more' than other Handel operas, as it really does all kind of blend together after the fact. But I certainly am very pro Handel in general today. I don't have any huge beef with period instrument stuff, which I find perfectly enjoyable most of the time. But as a bid for Handel as living breathing opera it seems to me that the set up here is hard to beat. It's just a fact that there's a quality in Handel that is a bit beyond the veil of history for modern audiences. The corrective is here: fantastic singers really DOING the arias and with no apologies.
Saturday, April 29, 2006
How will it end?
J: the bcast is sounding gut
A: yeah
A: no warmup needed for KM today
A: she is on
J: seriously
J: wanna come over early for pizza and wine later?
A: k
A: that sounds nice
J: yes I thought that could be low key and pleasant
J: I love that line he just sang
J: that repeats a lot
A: yeah
J: throughout
J: oh fuck
A: jesus
J: hah!
A: what the hell was that???
J: oh no
J: haha
J: oh lord
A: man
A: that was such a wipeout
J: poor Hep B
A: damn
A: cue up the opera bloopers tape
J: haha
J: the strings in this part sound like the beginning of a newscast
A: haha
A: I wonder if that is any indication he might bail on later acts
...
A: !!!!
J: shit!!!!!!!!!
A: dude
A: he can't go on like that
J: I bet the cover will come on
J: poor Hep B
A: if i was backstage and had a good rapport with him I would be all "Ben, you are really, really good looking"
J: haha
J: Ben, you have a really pleasant face
A: there have been no mid b-cast substitutions this year have there?
J: no
A: it will be interesting to see how juntwait handles that
J: well
J: I bet they would broadcast the Volpe announcement
A: these are the moments that make or break a metropolitan opera radio network announcer
...
A: holy mother of god
J: ahhh!
A: he cannot do the third act like this
A: it's going to be a catastrophe
J: no....please Ben
A: those are such terrible noises
J: good lord please just put on the cover
...
J: maybe he is fine
A: yeah
A: it is like watching an ice-skater fall
J: I know!
J: you feel like "shit if he couldn't get through the SHORT program. how will he ever get through this?"
A: ha
A: "maybe the judges will forget...I mean, they have to see it's a much better presentation than that Korean chick, right?"
J: "cracking on F's is an automatic deduction Jim. And big one"
J: hm I want to get a sandwich, but i don't want to miss any falls
J: good work
J: OK, brb. let me know if he lands on his ass
A: oof
J: ech
A: blew the triple lutz big time
J: that was not as bad as the others
A: no
J: still a deduction
J: meanwhile, Karita is the one to beat tonight
...
J: weak
A: yeah
J: suckola
A: technically still on his feet but basically just skating out the end of the song
J: the people of Brabant are all
J: "ok, well, nice to see you. We'll show you to your swan now"
A: haha
A: "Just how fernem did you say that land was?"
A: It's like musical cruelty to animals for that poor schwan
A: end this thing now
J: haha
J: seriously
J: Swan OUT
A:: just quietly take yourself behind a rectangle and think about what you've done
J: haha
J: wow, well what a way to end his Lohengrin run
J: so what I want to know is
J: if the swan is the duke
J: and he brings back the duke
J: then does he like hitchhike back to the Grail?
A: "Hey man, look, my swan turned into naked little boy, can I get a lift?"
J: hah
A: I hope he has this figured out by Parsifal
J: he will. I mean....he is really good; who knows what was up
A: yeah
A: no warmup needed for KM today
A: she is on
J: seriously
J: wanna come over early for pizza and wine later?
A: k
A: that sounds nice
J: yes I thought that could be low key and pleasant
J: I love that line he just sang
J: that repeats a lot
A: yeah
J: throughout
J: oh fuck
A: jesus
J: hah!
A: what the hell was that???
J: oh no
J: haha
J: oh lord
A: man
A: that was such a wipeout
J: poor Hep B
A: damn
A: cue up the opera bloopers tape
J: haha
J: the strings in this part sound like the beginning of a newscast
A: haha
A: I wonder if that is any indication he might bail on later acts
...
A: !!!!
J: shit!!!!!!!!!
A: dude
A: he can't go on like that
J: I bet the cover will come on
J: poor Hep B
A: if i was backstage and had a good rapport with him I would be all "Ben, you are really, really good looking"
J: haha
J: Ben, you have a really pleasant face
A: there have been no mid b-cast substitutions this year have there?
J: no
A: it will be interesting to see how juntwait handles that
J: well
J: I bet they would broadcast the Volpe announcement
A: these are the moments that make or break a metropolitan opera radio network announcer
...
A: holy mother of god
J: ahhh!
A: he cannot do the third act like this
A: it's going to be a catastrophe
J: no....please Ben
A: those are such terrible noises
J: good lord please just put on the cover
...
J: maybe he is fine
A: yeah
A: it is like watching an ice-skater fall
J: I know!
J: you feel like "shit if he couldn't get through the SHORT program. how will he ever get through this?"
A: ha
A: "maybe the judges will forget...I mean, they have to see it's a much better presentation than that Korean chick, right?"
J: "cracking on F's is an automatic deduction Jim. And big one"
J: hm I want to get a sandwich, but i don't want to miss any falls
J: good work
J: OK, brb. let me know if he lands on his ass
A: oof
J: ech
A: blew the triple lutz big time
J: that was not as bad as the others
A: no
J: still a deduction
J: meanwhile, Karita is the one to beat tonight
...
J: weak
A: yeah
J: suckola
A: technically still on his feet but basically just skating out the end of the song
J: the people of Brabant are all
J: "ok, well, nice to see you. We'll show you to your swan now"
A: haha
A: "Just how fernem did you say that land was?"
A: It's like musical cruelty to animals for that poor schwan
A: end this thing now
J: haha
J: seriously
J: Swan OUT
A:: just quietly take yourself behind a rectangle and think about what you've done
J: haha
J: wow, well what a way to end his Lohengrin run
J: so what I want to know is
J: if the swan is the duke
J: and he brings back the duke
J: then does he like hitchhike back to the Grail?
A: "Hey man, look, my swan turned into naked little boy, can I get a lift?"
J: hah
A: I hope he has this figured out by Parsifal
J: he will. I mean....he is really good; who knows what was up
Say my name...
As mad props of every sort have already been served up for the current Lohengrin elsewhere, I shall be brief.
Seeing this Lohengrin carried some special importance for me, as Lohengrin was my first real foray into Wagner. Several years ago, I had idly mentioned I was interested in going beyond the excerpts which had whetted my appetite, but was procrastinating about blowing a lot of money on a set. A kind friend filed this away, and on my birthday that spring, the Domingo/Norman/Solti Lohengrin arrived in the mail. One cold and rainy April afternoon, I sat down with the libretto, started listening, and was immediately, and irretrievably, hooked.
Yet until last week, I had never seen it live.
How could anyone could hate this production? I can understand detractors if the original cast wasn't too game for the staging. But I also have a hard time seeing how that would be such a big deal considering the overwhelming success of the concept. I mean, do you really want a castle?
Methinks Lohengrin is really the toughest Wagner to yank out of Romantic kitsch. Even Tannhauser has the porn thing going for it. (And if you need reasons why this is justified and in fact imperative see the PW's excellent short post here). The truth of the matter is that Lohengrin is a more wonderful piece of music than could ever be done justice by a designer in 2006 trying to ape the style of 100+ years ago. Wilson's staging gives us this honesty, and I for one am grateful. For, as we all know deep down, the great love duet of the third act really has nothing to do with middle ages canopy bedding and the like, and everything to do with Karita Mattila, on her knees in a sea of simple blue fabric, plaintively raising her arms to her husband. That's the whole g-d thing, folks.
Shorter rest of the production: Auguin pleased me very much, if there were times when I felt he didn't really have a feel/patience for the momentum of certain passages; Mattila takes a while to warm up--maybe this is the issue--but here she had me at hallo; Hep B sounded great--I do get the constricted thing, but man does he push through it to great effect; Devol was terrifying, as it should be--J thought better of her the second go round; Rene "Say Hey" Pape does yeoman's work comme toujours.
Fin.
Seeing this Lohengrin carried some special importance for me, as Lohengrin was my first real foray into Wagner. Several years ago, I had idly mentioned I was interested in going beyond the excerpts which had whetted my appetite, but was procrastinating about blowing a lot of money on a set. A kind friend filed this away, and on my birthday that spring, the Domingo/Norman/Solti Lohengrin arrived in the mail. One cold and rainy April afternoon, I sat down with the libretto, started listening, and was immediately, and irretrievably, hooked.
Yet until last week, I had never seen it live.
How could anyone could hate this production? I can understand detractors if the original cast wasn't too game for the staging. But I also have a hard time seeing how that would be such a big deal considering the overwhelming success of the concept. I mean, do you really want a castle?
Methinks Lohengrin is really the toughest Wagner to yank out of Romantic kitsch. Even Tannhauser has the porn thing going for it. (And if you need reasons why this is justified and in fact imperative see the PW's excellent short post here). The truth of the matter is that Lohengrin is a more wonderful piece of music than could ever be done justice by a designer in 2006 trying to ape the style of 100+ years ago. Wilson's staging gives us this honesty, and I for one am grateful. For, as we all know deep down, the great love duet of the third act really has nothing to do with middle ages canopy bedding and the like, and everything to do with Karita Mattila, on her knees in a sea of simple blue fabric, plaintively raising her arms to her husband. That's the whole g-d thing, folks.
Shorter rest of the production: Auguin pleased me very much, if there were times when I felt he didn't really have a feel/patience for the momentum of certain passages; Mattila takes a while to warm up--maybe this is the issue--but here she had me at hallo; Hep B sounded great--I do get the constricted thing, but man does he push through it to great effect; Devol was terrifying, as it should be--J thought better of her the second go round; Rene "Say Hey" Pape does yeoman's work comme toujours.
Fin.
FYI
Me and J hit up the Lincoln Center Tower the other night after having consumed a considerable amount of Stoli and duck. We both nabbed the '94 Neeme Jarvi Mazeppa. I will tell you now that it is awesome. I was pretty into the Met cast, but this one more or less trumps it on every count. Except for Larissa Dyadkova, who is the same count. Galina Gorchakova is exceptional; Sergei Leiferkus has all the feeling of Nikolai Putilin but with no wobbling; and where the Met Andrey (I have forgotten his name) left so much to be desired, Sergei Larin proves this is a tenor role to be reckoned with and then some.
I still stand behind that production in general. However, listening to the recording makes me realize how lame the "they come back from the dead" ending was at the Met. Best to let that last, beautiful, awful, sequence end as simply as possible. They just die in the snow. It is somehow sweet. Curtain.
I still stand behind that production in general. However, listening to the recording makes me realize how lame the "they come back from the dead" ending was at the Met. Best to let that last, beautiful, awful, sequence end as simply as possible. They just die in the snow. It is somehow sweet. Curtain.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Monday, April 24, 2006
Tosca: An Addendum
An act of major negligence on my part.
I completely forgot to mention the surprise highlight of Saturday evening's Tosca Prima: Met premiere of bass-baritone Kyle Ketelsen. Mr. Ketelsen sang Angelotti; his is one of the richest, most focused bass-baritone voices I have heard in some time. And he is quite young! So who knows where this voice could go...
So keep your ears open in act one. I think he is certainly going to be one to watch. I haven't been excited about a new baritone (tho it's his "bass-y" qualities I find most compelling) in awhile.
So, bravo to Mr. Ketelsen--who is a graduate alum of the acclaimed school of music at Indiana University.
I completely forgot to mention the surprise highlight of Saturday evening's Tosca Prima: Met premiere of bass-baritone Kyle Ketelsen. Mr. Ketelsen sang Angelotti; his is one of the richest, most focused bass-baritone voices I have heard in some time. And he is quite young! So who knows where this voice could go...
So keep your ears open in act one. I think he is certainly going to be one to watch. I haven't been excited about a new baritone (tho it's his "bass-y" qualities I find most compelling) in awhile.
So, bravo to Mr. Ketelsen--who is a graduate alum of the acclaimed school of music at Indiana University.
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